Refrigerating apparatus



J. W. CARL REFRIGERATING APPARATUS June 13, 1933.

Filed March 31, 1928 Patented June 13, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE JAMES W. CARL, O1! DAYTON, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO FRIGIDAIBE GORPORATIOII, F DAYTON, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE REFRIGEBATING APPARATUS Application filed larch 81, 1928. Serial No. 266,296.

This invention relates to refrigerating apparatus and particularly to a refrigerating device for motor vehicles.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide an improved refri crating element which can be disposed withln a small height which affords a relatively large amount of refrigerating surface.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved form of refrigerating elementwhich will promote the efl'ective'and uniform circulation of air throughout a refrigerator compartment.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawing wherein a preferred form of the present invention is clearly shown.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of a portion of a motor vehicle provided with a refrigerating system constructed in accordance with the present invention,

.Fig. 2 is a top plan view of a portion of the refrigerating element, and

Fig. 3 is an end view on the line 3--3 of Fig. 2. In refrigerated motor vehicles such as ice 30 cream trucks the matter of head room or available height for the storage of goods in the refrigerated compartment is very important. Since the bodies of vehicles of this character are very heavy they must be kept low in order not to raise the center of gravity of the vehicle. For this reason it becomes important to provide a refrigerating element having a relatively large amount of surface, sufiicient to cool a. large-sized compartment, but which can be disposed within a very small height. This invention is concerned, among other things, with providing an improved evaporator particularly adapted for this class of service.

Referring to the drawing, 10 designates an insulated compartment which may be carried by a motor vehicle having a machine compartment 12 which contains a refrigerating apparatus generally denoted by 13 and a 50 power plant generally denoted by 14. The

refrigerating apparatus includes a compressor driven by a motor 15 for applying refrigerant through a control valve 16, to the liquld refrigerant line 17 which is connected to the refrigerating device generally denoted by 18, from which gaseous or evaporated refrigerant is returned to the compressor through the vapor line 19.

The refrigerating device is made up of a number of elements, each of which consists of a fiat plate 20 of thermally conducting material such as copper, to which is secured in intimate thermal relation, for example by soldering, a refrigerant conduit 21. The conduit provides means for cooling the plate and also provides projections or protuberances extending above the plate. The plates are inclined as shown in Fig. 1-, the upper edges of the plates lying substantially in the same horizontal plane so that the vertical projection of one plate covers the vertical projections of the other plates. If the plates are all of the same size and disposed at the same-angle as shown in Fig. 1, the vertical projections of all of the plates will be coincident. By vertical projection is meant the projection of the plate upon a vertical plane parallel to the upper edge of the plate. The plates are preferably arranged in sets, those of one set being inclined in the opposite direction in respect to those of the other set. The plates are spaced apart a sufficient distance to provide ducts for circulating air between them and it will be observed that this inclined arrangement permits the disposition of a relatively large amount of cooling surface within a small height,'without restricting the circulation of air.

The plates. in each set are preferably connected in series and the two sets are connected in parallel between the liquid conduit 17 and the vapor conduit 19. The purpose of this arrangement is to equalize the refrigerating efl'ect produced by the evaporator, since in a system of this character the coldest part of the evaporator is the part nearest the control valve 16 and the evaporator of the refrigerant therein becomes progressively warmer as the distance from the control valve in the circuit increases.

The plates are suspended as near the top wall of the compartment as the requirements of circulation will permit. The width of the plates and their inclination is such that the vertical projections of the plates overlap and the plates therefore present to circulating air a totalarea greater than the horizontal area in which they are confined. This total area may be greater than the area of a horizontal plane within the four vertical walls of the refrigerated compartment.

The opposite inclination of the two sets of plates causes the air to circulate in opposite directions in each half of the compartment, as shown by the arrows, and thus sets up two independent circulating paths which thereby tend to'distribute equally the refrigerating effect produced by the evaporator. The disposition of the conduits on the upper side of the plates causes the air to come in contact with the conduits, which are the coldest part of the refrigerating system, and the projection of the conduits above the plates causes small eddy currents in the main currents of circulating air, which eddy currents serve tobring the main body of air more intimately in contact with the evaporator and thus increase the chilling effect of the evaporator.

While the form of embodiment of the invention as herein disclosed constitutes a preferred form, it is to be understood that other forms may be adopted, all coming within the scope of the claims which follow.

What is claimed is as follows:

-1. Refrigerating apparatus comprising in combination, a compartment to be cooled and an evaporator in the compartment including a plurality of inclined plates, each plate including a conduit for circulating refrigerant, I

and the conduits of the plates being connected in parallel to provide substantially uniform cooling of circulating air, and means providing a liquid refrigerant inlet and gaseous refrigerant outlet for the evaporator.

2. Refrigerating apparatus comprising in combination, a compartment to be cooled and a refrigerating element inthe compartment including a plurality of inclined sheets of thermally conducting material each having a reverse bent refrigerant conduit in intimate thermal contact with one side thereof, corresponding branch portions of the conduits extending in a plurality of substantially horizontal lines in different horizontal planes.

3. Refrigerating apparatus comprising in combination, a compartment to be cooled and a refrigerating element in the compartment including a plurality of inclined sheets of thermally conducting material, said sheets each having a plurality of refrigerant projections, the corresponding portions of said projections extending in a plurality of substantially horizontal lines in different horizontal planes.

mien-7e i. Refrigerating apparatus comprising in combination, a compartmentto be cooled and an evaporator adapted to contain a volatile refrigerant and disposed in the compartment, said evaporator including a plurality of inclined plates in intimate contact with the refrigerant and whose horizontal projections overlap, said plates being spaced apart to provide air circulating passages between and 7 throughout the width of the plates, said passages extending in a straight path entirely through the evaporator from the top to the bottom of said plates, and means providing a liquid refrigerant inlet and gaseous refrigerant outlet for the evaporator.

5. Refrigerating apparatus comprisingin combination, a compartment to be cooled and an evaporator adapted to contain a volatile refrigerant and disposed in the compartment, said evaporator including a plurality of inclined flat plates in intimate contact with the refrigerant and spaced fromone to another to provide air circulating passages between the plates, said passages extending throughout the width of said plates and in a straight path entirely through the evaporator from the top to the bottom of said plates, the total area of the plates being greater than the area intercepted on ahorizontal plane by the upright walls of the compartment, and means providing a liquid refrigerant inlet and gaseous refrigerant outlet for the evaporator.

6. Refrigerating apparatus comprising in combination a compartment to be cooled and an evaporator adapted to contain a volatile refrigerant and disposed in the compartment, said evaporator including a plurality of inclined flat plates in intimate contact with the refrigerant, said plates being spaced from one another and extending substantially entirely across the compartment to provide air circulating passages extending throughout the width of said plates and in a straight path entirely through the evaporator from the top to the bottom of said plates for inducing the entire circulation of air in the compartment between the plates, and means providing a liquid refrigerant inlet and gaseous refrigerant outlet for the evaporator.

7. An evaporator for refrigerating appaeach plate including a conduit for circulatingrefrigerant, and the conduits of the groups being connected in parallel to provide substantially uniform cooling of circulating air, and means providing a liquid refrigerant inlet and gaseous refrigerant outlet for the evaporator.

'9. An evaporator for refrigerating apparatus' adapted to contain a volatile refrigerant comprising in combination, a plurality of inclined flat thermally conducting plates spaced apart to provide air passages between them, said passages extending throughout the width of said plates and in a straight path entirely through the evaporator from the top to the bottom of said plates, the top edges of the plates lying substantially in a horizontal plane, refrigerant conveying conduit means for cooling the plates, and means providing a liquid refrigerant inlet and gaseous refrigerant outlet for the evaporator.

10. An evaporator for refrigerating apparatus adapted to contain a volatile refrigerant comprising in combination, a plurality of inclined flat thermally conducting plates spaced apart to provide air passages between t em, said passages extending throughout the width of said plates and in a straight path entirely through the evaporator from the top to the bottom of said plates, the vertical projection of one of the plates covering a portion of the vertical projection of another of the plates, refrigerant conveyingconduit means for cooling the plates, and means providing a liquid refrigerant inlet and gaseous refrigerant outlet for the evaporator.

11. An evaporator for refrigerating apparatus adapted to contain a volatile refrigerant comprising in combination, a plurality of inclined flat thermally conducting plates spaced apart to provide air passages between them, said passages extending throughout the width of said plates and in a straight path entirely through the evaporator from the top to the ottom of said plates, the vertical projection of one of the plates covering a portion of the vertical projection of another of the plates and a portion of the horizontal projections overlapping, refrigerant conveying conduit means for cooling the plates, and means providing a liquid refrigerant inlet and gaseous refrigerant outlet for the evaporator.

12. An evaporator for rett'rigeratingapparatus adapted to contain a volatile refrigerant comprising in combination, a .pair .of

apartto provide air circulating passages between them, said passages extending throughout the width of said plates and in a straight path entirely through the evaporator from the top to the bottom of said plates, the plates in one group being inclined opposite to the inclination of the plates in the other group, the vertical rojection of one plate covering a portion of the vertical pro ection of another of the plates, refrigerant conveying conduit means for cooling the plates, and means providing a liquid refrigerant inlet and gaseous refrlg'erant outlet for the evaporator.

13. An evgporator for refrigerating apparatus adapte to contain a volatile refrlgerant comprising in combination, a group' of inclined flat thermally conducting plates in intimate contact with the refrigerant and spaced apart to provide downwardly inclined air passages between the plates, sa'd passages extending throughout the width of said pates and in a straight path entirely through the evaporatorfrom the top to the bottom of said plates with the entrances thereto at the upper side of the grou of plates, and means providing a liquid re ri erant inlet and gaseous refrigerant-outlet for the evaporator.

14. Refrigerating apparatus comprising in combination, a compartment to be cooled and an evaporator adapted to contain a volatile.

refrigerant and disposed in the compartment, said evaporator including a plurality of plates in intimate contact with the refrigerant and inclined in opposite directions for coolin circulating air, said plates being space apart to provide air'circulating passages between and throughout the width of the plates, said passages extending in a straight path entirely through the evaporator from the top to the bottom of said plates, and means providin a liquid refrigerant inlet and gaseous re igerant outlet for the evaporator.

In testimony whereof I hereto-afiix my signature.

JAMES W. CARL.

groups of inclined flat thermally conducting 

